Knowing You
by PussyWillowCat
Summary: Nico and Rachel are both different. Different childhoods, different problems, different looks on life. But they are more alike then they seem, and someday they will meet. It will be the most confusing, hurting, yet perfect journey for both of them yet. Someday, they will fall in love. Nico/Rachel
1. Chapter 1

On May 17th, 1977 at 5:06 am Nico di Angelo is born. He is bald, with olive skin and blue eyes, like all babies. They will soon turn dark, as dark as death. His mother is Maria di Angelo. His father is Hades, Lord of the Dead.

On September 28th, 1996 at 7:38 pm, Rachel Elizabeth Dare is born. She has a mop of red hair and blue eyes, but there are flecks of green in them that say someday her eyes will be emerald green. Her mother is Karen Dare. Her father is Jonathon Dare.

Someday, they will meet, and it will be the most terrifying journey both of them will ever have. It will be confusing and painful and happy at the same time. Someday, they will fall in love.

Nico is two and his mother is holding him. She kisses his forehead and he catches hold of one of her black locks.

"Momma!"

His older sister, Bianca, comes in. She smiles at Nico and looks at Maria.

"Can I have a cookie?"

Maria nods and places Nico in his crib. He giggles and waves at Bianca.

"Hi, Banca!"

She smiles again and leaves with Maria.

Rachel is almost two, and is crying. She waves her fists, snagging them in her striking red hair. No one comes. She cries harder.

A woman with white-blond hair and violently pink fingernails comes in and glares at her.

"Shush, Rachel. Your father is having a meeting."

Rachel doesn't understand what that means; she just wants to be held. Her mother ignores her, picks up a magazine and leaves the room.

Eventually, Rachel stops crying, staring up at her mobile with wide, green eyes.

Nico and Bianca are playing with cars.

"You say 'vroom, vroom,'" she tells him. Nico nods eagerly. He adores Bianca.

Maria is sitting on the couch with a man who has oily black hair and sallow skin. They are talking in low, agitated voices.

"Let's race," his sister says. He agrees.

Suddenly, there is a huge BOOM.

Nico jumps and looks at Bianca. He is scared, and she will know what to do.

But there is a look of confusion on her face. He frowns. This isn't right.

He looks around for his mother but she isn't there.

All that's left is rubble.


	2. Chapter 2

Rachel sets her teddy bear up.

"Now, Mr. Roosevelt, do want mint or lemon zinger?"

The bear doesn't say anything. Rachel nods and turns to a stuffed white cat.

"What about you, Snuffles?"

She pours the tea she got from the kitchen and smiles widely.

"I'll ask mother if she wants some tea," she tells Snuffles.

Rachel skips down the corridor to where Karen is talking to her friends.

"Mother," she says. "Will you come have tea with me?"

Karen smiles tightly and opens her mouth to speak when one of the ladies, the one with the big crimson hat, cuts in.

"What a cute daughter you have, Karen!"

Karen nods but doesn't look too pleased.

"You can all have tea," Rachel offers. They smile.

"I would love to, Rachel."

She leads the way to her playroom and instructs them where to sit.

"Do you want mint of lemon?" she asks Mrs. Chenlin, the wife of a very successful businessman.

"Whichever you think is good, dear."

Rachel's brow furrows in thought.

"Lemon," she decides.

She starts to pour but drops the kettle. Hot tea splashes all over Karen and Mrs. Chenlin.

"Oh, Shirley, I'm so sorry!" Karen twitters. She escorts everyone back to the living room. As they leave, Karen shoots a furious look at her daughter. Rachel's eyes well up with tears and she gulps.

She knows what comes next.

* * *

Nico watches with interest as the man in the black suit leads him and Bianca into a building with a big blinking flower on it.

Inside, a man wearing a rainbow shirt smiles widely at Nico. He smiles back, a little cautiously. Maria has taught him to not trust strangers.

The man named Hades talks to the other man, who grins widely and nods.

"Come with me, children," Hades says. He takes them by the hand and leads them into the elevator.

The last thing Nico sees before the metal doors slide shut is the man in the rainbow shirt grinning dangerously.

* * *

Rachel stands in front of an imposing stone school.

"… she'll be fine here, I'm sure."

The newest nanny, Ms. Lanigan, is telling the headmaster. Rachel doesn't like the headmaster. He has a forked tongue that keeps dancing about his teeth.

She realizes the conversation has ended. The headmaster takes her hand.

"You first class, Ms. Dare, is art. Your teacher is Mr. Cannen."

Rachel nods and goes into the classroom.

As she paints a delicate line of lilac across the creamy white paper, she thinks school might not be so bad after all.

* * *

Time seems to blur as Nico and Bianca play the games and eat food and have fun. Bianca likes the racing games. Nico likes the zombie ones.

They share a room at night. Some nights, Nico gets nightmares about leathery skinned bat people and giant dogs with three heads. Bianca lets him snuggle into her and tells him stories until he falls back asleep again.

They have been there a couple of days, maybe five. Nico misses Maria but doesn't say that. He doesn't Bianca to think of him as a little kid, even if he is one.

Sometimes, he has dreams of a girl, with bright red hair and teal eyes. Sometimes, he sees a name.

_Rachel._


	3. Chapter 3

Rachel stands in front of her parents. They are whispering –like snakes, Rachel thinks- and glancing at her drawings.

"Who is this, Rachel?"

Jonathon pointed to the picture she drew with the Swiss crayons Karen bought her. It is a picture of a red haired girl with green eyes. She is older, and holding the hand of a dark haired, dark eyed man. They're eyes are fixed on each other, and behind them is a field of strawberries. The picture is rough and messy, obviously the work of a child, but clear all the same.

"I don't know," Rachel says anxiously, twisting the hem of her dress. She wants to play with her dolls. "I just drew it. Isn't it pretty?"

"Frankly, Rachel? I don't think it is."

Rachel looks crushed. Her lower lip trembles and her green eyes fill with tears.

"Come along, Rachel," Mrs. Lanigan says. She takes the little girl's hand and escorts her to her playroom.

"It's beautiful, Strawberry," she says. Rachel giggles at her nickname. "Don't show your parents. They don't understand."

* * *

A man comes, a man in a coat as dark as night. For a moment Nico thinks he is the man who Maria called 'darling,' but this one is different.

"It's time to go, children," he says. Nico takes the man's hand and peers at him with big, black eyes.

"Can we go see my mother, mister?"

The man's eyes soften.

"No," he murmurs. "We can't."

Nico helps the man get Bianca, who doesn't want to go, but soon they're on a bus to a school.

When they get there the man hands them two suitcases.

"There are your clothes," he tells them. Bianca rummages through hers and pulls out a floppy green hat and crams it on her head.

"Cool," she says. Nico edges closer to her. The school is big and looks like a castle. It scares him.

The man in the dark coat introduces them to another man, Dr. Thorn. He has one green eye and one amber eye. He eyes Bianca and Nico hungrily.

They settle into a room and Nico looks at Bianca.

"I want to go home."

She sighs and hugs him.

"This is our home now," she tells him.


	4. Chapter 4

It's Sunday morning and Rachel skips down the hall to her room. Her pet hamster that she named Zeus is waiting.

She skids to a stop. Zeus is cold and stiff on the bottom of his cage.

She prods him cautiously with her finger. He doesn't move.

Rachel bursts into tears and runs for Ms. Lanigan.

"Strawberry, what's wrong?"

Through her sobbing she tells the story. Ms. Lanigan gathers her in her arms.

"It's alright, Strawberry. It's alright."

Rachel has nightmares for weeks after that. Eventually Jonathon and Karen decide to send her to a therapist.

The counseling stops when he tells Karen that Rachel needed a more nurturing environment. Ms. Lanigan is fired for agreeing.

Once again, Rachel is alone.

* * *

Nico is lonely.

He wants friends, any friends, but no one talks to him. They ignore him, afraid for reasons he doesn't know.

He has Bianca, but she isn't the same as friends. He sees other boys playing basketball, but when he approaches they scatter, faces pale.

"They aren't good enough for you," Bianca tells him. But he knows better. It's other way around. He isn't good enough for them, and that hurts.


	5. Chapter 5

"Your grades are slipping."

Karen says to Rachel over the phone. Her daughter isn't important enough to see face to face.

"I'm sorry, Mother."

She isn't. All she cares about is art.

Karen sighs in exasperation.

"Try harder. I have to go."

She hangs up and Rachel stares at the receiver .

A movement catches her eye. It is a horse with wings, soaring through the blue.

An hour later her painting is finished. It is a silvery Pegasus, it's wings outspread, flying towards the freedom in the sky.

* * *

Nico is at a dance. Bianca and him sit in the bleachers. He tries to tell her about Mythomagic, his favorite game, but she doesn't listen. He falters and stops.

A tall blond girl and a boy with bright green eyes dance pass. Nico cocks his head; they don't look familiar.

Dr. Thorn materializes next to them.

"Come, children," he says, his evil aura feeling especially deadly tonight.

"But sir, we're at the dance," Bianca protests feebly.

"_Come with me, children."_

Nico is afraid. He holds onto Bianca's shirt, but she glares at him and he lets go.

Dr. Thorn grabs their necks, knocking off Bianca's hat in the process, and she tries to stop but he shoves them forward.

He pushes them into an office. His skin starts to morph, turning to spikes. He grunts and leers at them before pressing himself against the wall.

The door bursts open and the boy with sea green eyes comes in, a bronze sword in his hand. Nico stares at him in shock and awe.

Dr. Thorn creeps up behind him and winks.

"It's okay," the boy says. "I won't hurt you."

Nico tries to warn him but no words come out.

"My name's Percy. I'm going to take you out of here, get you somewhere safe."

Nico feels Bianca twitch and Percy's eyes widen. He spins around but Dr. Thorn -who is furry and spikey- shoots him with a spike that impales in Percy's shoulder. He slashes out with a sword –a sword?- but Dr. Thorn isn't there. He lets out an evil laugh.

"All three of you will come with me. Quietly. Obediently. If you make a single noise, cry out for help or try to fight, I will show you just how well I can throw."

* * *

Rachel takes a sip of her soda and sighs. She is sitting inside a fast-food restaurant, drawing and waiting for her father to call.

The woman across the room has a furry leg and red eyes. Everyone around her looks enthralled but Rachel is careful. She knows that the woman is dangerous.

Her mother and father want to go to Hoover Dam. They plan to stay in a luxurious hotel nearby and eat at five-star restaurants. Rachel wishes they could stay in a cabin and play Scrabble like the other families.

Rachel is almost fourteen. It's hard to believe she's almost in high school. She doesn't have many friends, but instead works on projects. This week she's working on building a boardwalk for a bird preserve outside the city.

Jonathon is having a very important meeting. She isn't allowed back until he calls.

An hour passes, then two. It grows dark and everyone leaves, even the lady with red eyes. The waitresses begin to glare at her.

Her father never calls.

Nico is sad for Percy. The blond girl, Annabeth, has fallen over the cliff.

Bianca has joined the Hunters.

He has a feeling it's because of him and a flame of pain starts in his heart.

Dawn comes and a sleek car flies –flies?- and lands next to them. All around them the snow melts.

It's Apollo, Lord of the Sun.

"Can I drive?"

Apollo spares a him a glance.

"Too young," he decides.

Nico slumps and then perks back up. Apollo chooses a girl, Thalia, to drive. Nico notices she looks pale and wan. He hopes she's okay.

The ride is bumpy and slightly painful. Bianca sits in the back with the other Hunters, and Nico is hurt but doesn't let it show.

They land in the lake –he thinks Thalia might be afraid of heights- and Percy takes him to Chiron. The Hunters don't like him, so Nico decides the man is amazing. He will not forgive the Hunters for taking his sister.

_At least she's safe, _he decides.

Grover shows him the orientation film. Nico bounces back, excited for the first day.

"SO COOL!" He yells. He beams at Chiron. "You're a centaur!"

Chiron explains how he likes to look human for first sights. Nico nods and turns to the pudgy man in the bright shirt.

"And whoa! You're the wine dude!"

Nico personally doesn't think he looks like a god, but whatever.

"The wine dude?"

He ignores Dionysus.

"You're Dionysus! I have your figurine!"

"My figurine."

"In my game, Mythomagic. And your holofoil card, too, and even though you have only like five hundred attack points and everybody thinks you're the lamest card ever, I think your powers are totally sweet!"

"Ah."

Grover leads Nico to cabin eleven. Nico smiles at the people, who look a little shifty to him.

Travis and Connor Stoll point to a spot on the floor and Nico puts his backpack on it.

"We're going to dinner," Connor tells him.

He falls last in line and there is hardly any room on the bench but he feels comfortable. He scrapes some food into the flames.

"Please claim me," he whispers. He knows that is what everyone wants.

For a moment the fire seems to turn black, and someone smiles at him from the heat and there is a dark presence but Nico is not afraid. But then it turns back to a light rosy-peach and he thinks he imagined it.

As he eats, he watches Bianca laugh and joke with the other Hunters and he wonders why she never looked that happy with him.

* * *

Rachel is in a hotel in Albuquerque. Her parents are out, and she is in the hotel alone.

She sighs and leaves the room, going down to the lobby. She wishes she was home working on her project.

"Hello."

She turns. A boy with blond hair and brown eyes is smiling shyly at her. She smiles back.

"Hi."

He fidgets.

"Where are you from?"

"New York."

His eyes widen a fraction.

"Oh. Cool. I'm from Oregon."

"Cool."

There is an awkward silence.

"I'm Rachel."

"I'm Cody."

As they head towards the restaurant, she thinks that perhaps this vacation won't be so bad after all.

* * *

**A/N**

**I'm not getting any reviews, guys. Please review! I'm not updating again until I get five **

**Kate**


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N**

**Thanks to shep114! That was such a great review :D**

"You have to promise to keep my sister safe."

"I- that's a big thing to promise, Nico, on a trip like this. Plus, she's got Zoe, Thalia and Grover-"

"Promise."

"I'll do my best, I promise that."

"Okay. Get going, then!"

Nico smiles as Percy nods and walks away. Nico turns back to the Hermes cabin. He trusts Percy. Percy will protect Bianca. Percy will not let anything happen to her.

There is a bounce in his step as he walks away.

* * *

Rachel has been at Hoover Dam for a day and she already misses Cody. He reassured her they'd keep in touch, and she believes him.

Her parents are always on the phone, and Rachel has a cold. Her nose is stuffy and her throat hurts.

She still wants to go home. She's missing the rest of her boardwalk project.

She sees two girls in the water. They smile and wave at her. She waves back hesitantly.

She wanders inside and eats a burrito.

And then she freezes. Her father is outside, with a woman, holding hands. It isn't Karen.

Rachel rushes up to her room, fighting back tears.

* * *

It's the middle of the night and Nico wakes. He has a horrible feeling that something terrible has happened to Bianca.

He trembles. It feels like... it feels like she's dead.

He takes a deep breath and rolls over. Percy is protecting her. She will be fine. She is fine. She will come home and hug Nico and they will be a team, like always.

The feeling won't go away.

* * *

Rachel meanders into the women's bathroom and places a few tissues in her pocket. She leaves and blows her nose.

WHOOSH.

A bronze sword comes swinging and she drops her tissue. It glides through her like she's a ghost.

A boy, with messy black hair and bright green eyes is standing there, looking abashed.

"Oh, my god. Do you always try to kill people when they blow their nose?" she demands, shocked and afraid.

"You're mortal!" He exclaims. Rachel stares at him.

"What's that supposed to mean? Of course I'm mortal! How did you get that sword past security? "

A stupid question, but she's disoriented.

"I didn't- wait. You can see it's a sword?"

She rolls her eyes.

"Well, it's either that or the world's biggest toothpick. And why didn't it hurt me? I mean, not that I'm complaing. Who are you? And whoa, what are you wearing? Is that lion's fur?"

He just stares at her then snaps his fingers loudly.

"You don't see sword," he tells her. "It's just a ballpoint pen."

Rachel wonders if there's a screw loose in his head.

"Um, no weirdo. It's a sword."

He glares at her.

"Who are you?"

"Rachel Elizabeth Dare," she says irritably. "Now are you going to answer my questions or should I call security?"

He frowns.

"No! I mean, I'm kind of in a hurry. I'm in trouble."

She frowns.

"In a hurry or in trouble?"

"Kind of both."

Rachel's eyes widen.

Behind the boy there are walking skeletons.

She doesn't know why, but she must protect him. It is vital. It is important.

"Bathroom!"

"What?"

"Bathroom! Behind me! Now!"

He ducks inside and the skeletons come.

She blabbers loudly about the boy and they leave, chattering.

She is scared.

"I owe you one, Rachel Elizabeth Dare."

"What are those things?" She already knows. "They looked like-"

"Skeletons? Yeah, I know. Do yourself a favor. Forget about it. Forget you ever saw me."

"Forget you tried to kill me?"

"That, too. "

"But who are you?"

"Percy- gotta go!"

"What kind of name is Percy Gotta Go?"

But he's already gone.


	7. Chapter 7

Rachel couldn't believe it.

There, right in front of her, is Percy. Sea green eyes and black hair. _Percy._

She grabs his shoulder.

"What are you doing here?"

Not very polite, but she needs to know.

"Rachel Elizabeth Dare," he says. She stares at him in surprise. She didn't think he would remember her name. She didn't think she was important enough for him to.

"And you're Percy somebody. I didn't get your full name last December when you tried to kill me."

Not that she cares. It made her life worth living, if only for a second.

"Look, I didn't- I wasn't- what are you doing here?"

She shrugs.

"Same as you, I guess. Orientation."

"You live in New York?"

She inwardly rolls her eyes. He's a little slow.

"What, you thought I lived at Hoover Dam?"

The cheerleaders start pep talking and Rachel twists around to face them. She almost gasps.

Red eyes, bronze leg, a furry leg…

Monsters.

* * *

Nico is having dreams.

It starts in the maze. There is a number of things, from the Labyrinth to New York, but there's always one constant.

A girl. A girl with hair like fire and eyes like jade. She is beautiful.

Nico doesn't know who she is, but it doesn't matter. Sometimes, she is with Percy, or Annabeth. Sometimes, she is with him.

There is something about her, something special, something _real._

And her name. Her name is always there.

_Rachel Dare._

* * *

She promises to cover for Percy after he blows up the school, and she does. She makes up stories and alibis and doesn't get home till six.

There is so, so much to think about. The Greek gods. Pegasus. It's all real. It shouldn't be so surprising , considering all the things she'd see, but it is.

And Percy. Percy with sea green eyes and ebony hair.

She almost laughs as she remembers Percy's friend's expression. Oh, they like each other.

That night, as random letters and words spin around, twelve letters line up.

_Nico di Angelo._

* * *

Nico stands in a graveyard in Charleston. The night is humid, and he can hear cicadas chirping in the background.

"Is it deep enough yet?" Nico must make his voice sharp. He cannot reveal weakness. Minos is malicious, cold. He would revolt and Nico cannot have that.

"Nearly, my lord. But, I tell you. This is unnecessary. You already have me for advice."

"I want a second opinion!" He is tired of Minos' control.

The two skeletons –Nico winces as he remembers Percy and his fight- climb out of the grave.

"Thank you. You are dismissed." They collapse.

"You might as well thank the shovels. They have as much sense."

Nico ignores him. Carefully, for this is vital, he pours the soda into the pit.

"Let the dead taste again. Let them rise and take this offering. Let them remember."

He empties the Happy Meal into the hole. He almost smiles as he recalls the lady who gave it to him. She was quite condescending.

_If only she knew, _he muses.

"In my day, we used animal blood. It's perfectly good enough. They can't taste the difference," Minos grumbles.

"I will treat them with respect." No, he will treat his sister with respect. She is all that matters.

"At least let me keep the toy."

"Be quiet!"

The pit fills with bubbling liquid and Nico takes a deep breath. Vapor figures materialize next to it.

"There are too many. You don't know your own powers," Minos says worriedly.

"I've got it under control," Nico replies but even he can hear the tremor in his voice.

He draws his sword and the ghosts back up.

"One at a time," he orders. A shape comes from them and drinks.

"Who are you? Speak."

"I am Theseus."

Nico nods. Theseus… It sounds familiar.

"How do I retrieve my sister?"

"Do not try. It is madness."

But Nico is tired of people underestimating him. He is tired of people telling him he can't.

"Just tell me!"

"My stepfather died. He threw himself into the sea because he thought I was dead in the Labyrinth. I wanted to bring him back, but I could not."

"My lord, the soul exchange! Ask him about that!" Minos hisses.

"That voice… I know that voice," Theseus whispers.

"No, you don't you fool! Answer my lord's questions and nothing more!"

"I know," Theseus repeats slowly.

"I want to know about my sister! Will the quest in the Labyrinth help me win her back?"

Theseus faces Nico hesitantly.

"The Labyrinth is treacherous. There was only one thing that helped me through. The love of a mortal girl. The string was only part of the answer. It was the princess who guided me."

_The love of a mortal girl. _

For some reason the girl from his dreams comes to mind. _Rachel._

"We don't need any of that. I will guide you, my lord. Ask him of a soul for a soul. He will tell you."

"A soul for a soul. Is it true?"

"I-I must say yes. But the specter-"

"Just answer the questions, knave!"

Nico almost rolls his eyes.

Suddenly, the once peaceful vapors begin to whisper and he feels an irrational terror rise up in him. He ignores it.

"I want to see my sister! Where is she?"

"He is coming," Theseus says fearfully. "He has sensed your summons. He comes."

"Who?" Nico demands.

"You must release us!"

A horrible sense of power sweeps through the clearing. He waves his hand and releases the ghosts. The ancient power recedes.

Nico takes a deep breath.

He won't see his sister tonight.

* * *

Rachel closes her eyes and lets the paintbrush move.

She opens them a moment later. There is a sprawling maze, endless, stretching across the whole world. There is Percy. There is a mountain, exploding in a burst of heat and light. There is an island, lost in a sea of dreams, with a girl. A girl so lonely and sad it brings tears the Rachel's eyes.

And there is a boy. He is sad, too. So sad. He is afraid and distrusting. It involves Percy and a girl that looks like him. That he loves. But she is dead, Rachel knows that. She is dead and the boy's heart is broken.

* * *

**A/N**

**Any guess of who the lonely girl on the island is?**

**Not long till Nico and Rachel meet! :D**

**REVIEW!**

**Kate**


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N**

**It is Calypso. She's in the fourth, I know, because it's one of my favorite parts **

**Thanks for reviewing!**

Nico is at the ranch. He tries to ignore the sun cows and other cruel animal treatments. He tries to cooperate. Geryon must let him go. This is life or death.

He hurries out of the house and freezes.

Percy, Annabeth, Grover and a… Cyclopes?

Nico feels a murderous rage sweep through him, a smoldering fury that will not let the voice of reason in.

Geryon welcomes them, but Nico can tell he's just biding his time. He wants to warn Percy –or Annabeth, who he has developed a bit of a… fondness for- but his bitterness and anger won't let him.

Percy cleans the stables and Nico knows this is it.

Geryon ties them up and Percy looks almost insane when he sees Annabeth, Grover and Tyson. He does not care about Nico. He proved that when he let Bianca die.

And then Percy says that Bianca will come if he's there and that makes him even angrier. How dare he!

What makes it worse is that she does answer.

"Hello, Percy," his sister says. Nico feels a tidal wave of relief and happiness so strong it almost knocks him over.

Fuzzily, he hears Percy and Bianca talking, but he does not care.

"Bianca!" He stumbles towards the silvery spirit of his sister with adoring eyes.

"Hello, Nico. You've gotten so tall."

Briefly, he wonders why she mentions that now when there is so much more to say.

"Why didn't you answer me sooner? I've been trying for months!"

"I was hoping you'd give up."

Those six words make Nico falter in hurt and disbelief.

"Give up? How could you say that? I'm trying to save you!"

"You can't, Nico. Listen to Percy."

But Nico doesn't want to listen to Percy. If Percy had just kept his promise, this wouldn't have happened.

"No! He let you die! He's not you friend!"

"You must listen to me. Holding a grudge is dangerous for a child of Hades. It's our fatal flaw. You have to forgive. Promise me this."

"I can't. Never." This is true. Whenever he looks at the child of Poseidon, there is a strange feeling he gets. Halfway between hate and affection.

"Percy has been worried about you, Nico. I let him see what you were up to, hoping he would find you."

"So it was you sending the Iris-messages," Percy says.

"Why are you helping him and not me!? It's not fair!"

It isn't fair. It isn't fair that Bianca is dead. It isn't fair that Kronos is rising and so much weight is resting on Nico's shoulders.

His words are angry, but there is an ocean of hurt behind his dark eyes.

"You're close to the truth now," Bianca tells him. "It isn't Percy you're mad at. It's me."

_Nononono. _Nico wants Bianca to be quiet. _No. No. No._

"No."

"You're mad because I left you to become a Hunter of Artemis. You're mad because I died and left you alone. I am sorry for that, Nico. I truly am."

He blocks her words out, because they hurt. They hurt because they're true.

He is angry she left him for a goddess. He is furious that she died. So angry at her for leaving him all alone, to deal with the pain and the heartbreak. He is angry that it is him and him alone that has to deal with Hades and Kronos and death, oh so much death. He hates her for everything she has done to leave him. He hates her for becoming a Hunter so she wasn't responsible for him anymore.

Most of all, he hates her for dying.

* * *

Rachel is part of a program, and art program. She is painted gold, completely and utterly gold.

Percy calls. He asks to meet her.

The conversation isn't drawn out. Annabeth is always glaring at her. Rachel knows she is worried about her and Percy. She inwardly chuckles. Percy and her? No.

This is the first time one of her dreams has come true.

The Labyrinth is huge. It is sprawling. It is endless. It is one of the most terrifying things she has ever seen.

The only thing that makes her feel better is the faint glow in the floor that tells her where to go. She isn't as worried. She knows. The only she can trust is herself.

The monsters from school –that seems like so long ago- are standing there. She leads them to big doors and mentions something about Percy's brother. Rachel thinks he is weirdly defensive about his family.

Percy fights the giant and Rachel is impressed. His sword is an arc of bronze, killing everything it touches, whether it is monsters or demigods.

"So it wasn't Nico after all," Percy says, and she feels a jolt in her stomach. Nico. Nico. Who is Nico? Where is Nico? These questions are important, so vitally important.

Annabeth, Percy and Rachel stumble into a room and make camp.

"Annabeth doesn't usually act like this," Percy says of her rudeness. "I don't know what her problem is."

Rachel cannot believe he can't see. It's obvious. Annabeth loves Percy and Percy loves her.

* * *

Oh, Nico is tired. He is alone in the maze with only Minos.

He doesn't see it coming. Empousai and hellhounds – they get him before he can fight.

They talk in strange hissing sounds as they drag him along, his clothes catching on the wall.

They shove him in a door. There are circular windows, showing a high mountain view. In the room is a man with short gray hair, Annabeth, Percy and a girl. A girl with fire for hair and eyes greener then the emeralds in the Underworld.

All of his fears melt away.

She is here.

* * *

So many monsters and things that are just evil burst in the door. For a moment Rachel is distracted by all the creatures and sounds. Daedalus' s betrayal and the arrival of everyone is shocking. Swords are drawn and tension crackles.

But then she focuses.

In the front, wrapped in chains, is a boy. A boy with hair as dark as night and eyes like Death itself. Her eyes meet his and all of her worries melt away.

He is here.


	9. Chapter 9

All Hades breaks loose.

Fighting and monsters crumbling under the deadly touch of celestial bronze. Nico fights, too, battling and slashing, but his thoughts are elsewhere. More specifically, with girl who is grabbing bronze wings from the wall.

She is beautiful. Her hair shimmers gold in the sunlight. Her jade eyes are dark with thought. Her skin is pale. While Nico fights, he watches her hungrily, memorizing the curve of her neck, the way she flicks her hair out of her eyes. He is staring, committing every feature to memory, in case he never sees her again.

* * *

As Rachel grabs the wings off the wall, she can feel his eyes on her.

She flushes, wishing she was brave enough to meet his gaze. Instead, she concentrates on getting every pair off their hooks. Her whole body is warm from his eyes. She is happy, happier then she has ever been before. She turns and sees him.

His skin is olive, slightly sallow. His hair glints in the sun. His eyes are black, like twin pieces of coal. He is beautiful. Sometimes, a lock of his midnight hair falls in his eyes and he flicks his head, tossing it back. Yes, he is beautiful. He is special.

Rachel will never forget him.

* * *

Minos has betrayed him. Nico is furious, but not surprised.

"No! I am!"

His sword stabs into the floor. The room seems to darken, the windows shatter.

At that moment, he looks up and meets her eyes.

They are full of wonder, awe and something else he cannot place, but something that sends his heart racing. The floor cracks open and the spirits and Minos are sucked in, deep into the darkness. The girl helps him up -Nico's skin burns where she touches him- and helps graft a pair of wings to his back.

When she is done he misses her touch.

* * *

Rachel helps put the wings on, her fingers shaking slightly.

Her fingers tingle slightly where she touches him.

She and him jump from the window, soaring and swooping through the afternoon sky. His hair is almost purple, and there is a look of pure joy on his face.

Percy and Annabeth are somewhere behind them, and Rachel can sort of hear Annabeth yelling: "Remember to flap!"

Rachel giggles and her and the boy's eyes meet hers.

She has yet to know his name, but somehow she knows.

Nico.

* * *

His hair is getting blown against his forehead and in his eyes, and he is flying, flying through the sky that's a beautiful cerulean.

Not as beautiful as the girl, though, he thinks.

As though his thoughts have summoned her, their eyes meet, black and green. His whole body seems to spark and he smiles at her. She smiles back, a smile that takes his breath away.

He realizes no one has told him her name, but he already knows it.

Rachel.


	10. Chapter 10

Annabeth likes architecture.

They start a conversation, but Rachel isn't really paying attention to the blonde, who is blabbering on about facts.

She instead, is listening to Nico talk. His voice reminds her of melted chocolate.

"Thanks for coming after us," Percy says awkwardly.

"I owed you for the ranch, Percy. Plus... I wanted to see Daedalus for myself. Minos is right, in a way. No one should live that long. It's unnatural."

"That's what you were after," Percy says thoughtfully. "You wanted to trade Daedalus' soul for your sister's."

"Rachel?"

She turns back to Annabeth.

A while later, she freezes. There is an aura of pure evil surrounding that way. Rachel stares at it in horror. Percy insists on taking alone, and he leaves.

A heavy silence follows and suddenly she knows something is wrong.

"Something is happening," she says frantically, and her, Nico and Annabeth run down the dark hall until the reach the stone building.

"PERCY!"

With all of her might, she throws the blue hairbrush in her back pocket as hard as she can at the blonde guy's eye. They run.

"FOLLOW THEM!"

"NO!" Nico closes his eyes and a huge rock bursts from the ground.

Her mouth falls open but still they run, as fast as they can.

* * *

Nico is scared. Kronos knows now. He knows about Nico's parent. He will be after him.

He shudders and sits down, watching as Annabeth sobs brokenly. Annabeth is always so strong. She is a pinnacle of safety. It shocks and terrifies him to see her cry.

They continue on and Percy sees a crumpled Rasta cap.

Nico realizes it is Grover's.

The great god Pan's presence makes Nico sit up straighter. He feels energized, better.

He feels alert enough the feel the words left unsaid as Pan doesn't talk to him.

He feels strong enough to pretend that doesn't hurt.

* * *

Percy whistles sharply, and five beautiful horses with wings land elegantly on the road. Rachel gasps.

"Their beautiful!"

Percy laughs. "Yeah."

And then he asks about her dad. Uncomfortably, she tells him about Jonathon Dare and his business. Percy reassures her he will judge her.

"I kind of memorized it," he says of her number she scribbled on his hand so long ago. She smiles at him.

Right before she leaves, Rachel meets Nico's eyes. She will miss him, his presence. With him there she feels whole again, and she knows she'll see him soon, because as she's walking away, he smiles at her and mouths:_ I will find you._


	11. Chapter 11

The attack on camp is huge. Nico summons skeletons, and that drains his energy. He collapses and he feels that grass around him singe. When he wakes, Daedalus has decided to die.

"Your time has long since come. Rest."

A smile spreads across the old inventor's face and his skin disappears, revealing bronze metal. Then that, too, evaporates and he is gone.

* * *

Rachel dreams that night.

_She is standing in the desert, watching as a girl with long dark hair that looks like Nico and Percy talk._

_"No. I'll go."_

_"You can't! You're new to this. You'll die."_

_"It's my fault the monster came after us. It's my responsibility."_

_The girl bends downs and picks up a small golden statue. It's the god Hades._

_"Here. If anything happens, give that to Nico. Tell him... tell him I'm sorry."_

_Rachel wants to scream no, that the girl will die, but she can't move or speak. With horror she watches as the girl is crushed, dying alone in a pile of metal._

_"No!" Rachel yells but it's too late._

She awakes with a start and reality comes back. She is in Manhattan. She is at home. In a couple of days she is going to Saint Thomas and tomorrow she is meeting Percy.

With a sigh she rolls over and falls asleep.

* * *

Nico is worried Percy will not do it. It is the only way to survive. He plans to do it himself, though he does not tell Percy that.

The Underworld is dark, as always. In the distance, Nico can see a ray of light.

Elysium.

He approaches the River Styx. A terror rises in him, but he keeps walking towards the bank where inky waters swirl with broken dreams. Before he goes, he imagines his Achilles Heel. He decides on the area between his shoulder blades. He takes a deep breath, and steps into the water.

The pain is unbelievable. It is like swimming in acid, like getting burned alive. He sees Bianca, yelling his name, he sees Percy fighting like madman, he sees his father scowling. His memories are slipping away. What was his name again?

Nico. Nico di Angelo. Son of Hades. His name is Nico. His sister is Bianca, who has died. One of his best friends, Percy. Annabeth.

They won't let him hold onto their memory, it isn't strong enough. He's floating in a pool of forgetfulness.

"Come on, Nico! I need you to help me."

Rachel is standing there, smiling at him. Her fiery hair is blowing behind her in the breeze, her hand is holding a paintbrush. They are on a steep hill that overlooks the ocean, and Rachel is painting the sunset. Nico has stumbled over the edge, that is all.

He hoists himself up and promptly collapses on the bank to the river. It is over. He is virtually indestructible.


	12. Chapter 12

"Yes, but Percy, you'd be doing me a huge favor. It'd be so much better if you were there with us. Besides, there's something I want to-"

She stops. Not here.

"Something you want to talk about? You mean... something so serious we'd have to go to Saint Thomas to talk about?"

"Look, just forget about it for now. We're a couple of normal people out for a drive and we're watching the ocean and it's nice to be together."

Percy nods. "Okay. Just a normal afternoon with two normal people."

"And so... hypothetically, if these two people liked each other, what would it take for the stupid guy to kiss the girl, huh?"

She almost laughs when he blushes. He thinks she is talking about him. He is wrong. Like isn't the right word for what Rachel feels when she meets Nico's dark eyes. She's pretty sure it's close to love.

"Oh... um..."

Suddenly, a black Pegasus lands on the hood and Rachel knows it's starting.

* * *

"Isn't it gray?"

"Yes."

Nico isn't sure how he knows all these things about Rachel, but he does. She knows things about him, too.

Rachel is sitting in her room, Nico can see that. Behind her he can see the edge of a canvas.

"And your's is navy, yeah?"

He nods. "Your pet hamster died when you were six. His name was Zeus."

Rachel's eyes widen in surprise, as do Nico's. He can see it clearly, see six-year-old Rachel cry as she sees the body.

"And... your sister died when she was on a quest."

Nico freezes as images of Bianca fill his mind. He misses her so, so much.

"Yes," he says, his voice breaking. "She did."

Rachel doesn't say anything, just looks at him with understanding and that is enough.

"Your favorite food is scones. You like to drink espresso," he tells her. She nods.

"Your's is chocolate-covered strawberries and you like pineapple juice."

"Yes."

"Rachel? It's late and we're leaving in the morning. You should go to bed." A disembodied voice calls.

"I have to go now," she says.

"Okay."

"Good night."

"Good night."

There is so much left unsaid in those words.

* * *

A boy with dark blonde hair and bright blue eyes is hiding in a closet while outside, a woman with eyes that glow green is searching for him.

"Luke? Luke, where are you?"

The boy- Luke- is scared of his mother.

The dream changes.

It is the same boy, Luke, but he's older and a scar runs across his face. He is bitter and angry.

It changes.

Annabeth is leaning over Luke, crying. Percy is standing there, holding his sword. Luke takes the dagger.

_The hero's soul, cursed blade shall reap._

And it comes to Rachel.

Luke. Luke is afraid and he is Kronos. Percy isn't the hero. Percy never was.


	13. Chapter 13

"Percy!"

Suddenly Percy is holding a sword to his throat so tightly that he can't breath.

"Want... to... rescue," he chokes.

"Oh, yeah? And why should I trust you?" Percy snarls.

"No... choice?" Nico suggests.

The river is just as he remembers it. Achilles talks to Percy, which surprises Nico since he didn't talk to him.

Just another prejudice of the son of Hades, he realizes bitterly. May Castellan might've been one of the loneliest people he had ever seen.

He sits down and closes his eyes.

When Percy is out of the river, his skin is dark red. Nico wonders if his skin was like that.

As Nico trudges back to his father on Percy's orders, he thinks about how Hades liked Bianca more and he fights back tears.

* * *

"I'll... I'll go there in the fall. I won't even complain. But you have to get me back to New York right now."

Rachel is shocked when he agrees. She is even more shocked when Annabeth lands the helicopter.

New York is chaotic. Half-bloods and Pegasus are scattered on the ground, hurt.

"Percy," she says to him. "A trick that ends in death."

Can he not feel it? There is a sense of trickery in the air, a lie that goes back years. Someone will die.

"Percy, you are not the hero."

He stares at her in shock and confusion, but she cannot help anymore. She wants to ask about Nico, if he is okay, but she doesn't.

She isn't sure if she wants to know the answer.

* * *

"But father! If Olympus crumbles, so will you!"

"Have the Olympians ever helped me? No! I shall not."

"But father-"

"NO!" Hades radiates power, and his eyes flash.

Nico sighs and retreats from the throne room. Persephone follows him.

"Nico," she calls as he walks through her garden.

"Yes, Lady?"

Her eyes soften. "Hades is... stubborn. He will come around, I promise you."

Nico gapes at her. Persephone hates him.

"You hate me. Why... why are you helping?"

She smiles softly. "I cannot blame you for you father's actions. He was unfaithful, yes, but that has passed. You are a child; it is not your fault."

Nico thinks that she might be the most reasonable of the gods.

* * *

"It will be killed by a child of Ares."

There is a strange web of lying and sneaking around the matter, but Rachel cannot focus.

"Rachel, get inside," Percy says to her.

"I want to stay."

A shadow covers the sun and a terrible dragon, no, drakon, is coiled around a skyscraper. It roars and windows shatter.

"On second thought," Rachel says, "I'll be inside."

She meanders around the hotel, checking on the wounded and straightening up.

Suddenly, the visions hit her.

_A girl, a traitor... the child of Ares... lies..._

Before Rachel warns them a scream pierces the air and she knows it's too late.


	14. Chapter 14

Nico is thrilled. He is ecstatic.

Hades is going to fight.

Nico takes Mrs. O'Leary and he is there, in Manhatten.

"Got your invitation. Hope it's not too late to join the party."

Kronos looks furious, and cold fear starts in Nico's stomach, but he ignores it.

"ATTACK!" His father screams, and the zombies surge forward, a tsunami of death and terror.

Nico fights as Annabeth, Grover and Percy run for Olympus, and he knows this is the beginning of the end.

* * *

Rachel falters. She knows that she could do this. She could become the Oracle of Delphi. It's possible now.

"Rachel? Where are you going?"

She turns. Nico is standing there, his brow wrinkled concern.

"I - the Oracle-"

Realization dawns on his face.

Rachel sees what could be. She becomes the Oracle, and she loses Nico.

She doesn't, and she and Nico are together. She sees their first kiss, she sees his proposal. She sees their wedding.

And last, the last thing, she sees a child -a little girl- with hair as dark as night and eyes as green as emeralds.

She comes back to reality, and Nico is looking at her, terrified, scared.

"No," she tells him. "It's not my destiny."

His whole face lights up and Rachel beams at him.

"I need to go to Olympus," he says. She nods.

"I'll wait for you," she tells him. He nods.

She will always wait for him.


	15. Chapter 15

Nico sits cross-legged on the floor in front of his father's throne.

He has been accepted. His father is proud of him.

Nico beams at all the gods. The ones that notice smile uncomfortably. He doesn't care. When this is over, he has Rachel, whether as a friend or more.

He grins even wider when Percy asks the gods to accept each other and claim all their children. To respect even the minor gods.

"Percy is an alright fellow, I suppose," Hades grumbles.

Nico's mouth drops open in surprise.

When the meeting is over Percy rushes to the lobby to see his mother. Nico follows him and feels envious as his mother hugs him so tightly he looks squished.

It's sometimes hard not to be jealous of him.

* * *

Rachel is in Central Park, perched on a huge oak that was once a Hyperion Giant. Her head is in her hands, and she is laughing and crying at the same time.

"Rachel?"

She turns. Nico is looking up at her, his eyes concerned.

"Come up here," she tells him. He nods and scales the tree quickly.

"It's all over," he says softly.

"Yes."

"No more battles. No more pain and fear."

"Yes," Rachel agrees. "No more pain and fear. But so many dead Nico. So many."

"They are achieving Elysium right now," he assures her.

Rachel sighs and rests her head against his shoulder.

The sun is just beginning to rise, turning the treetops crimson. The battle is over. Peace is here.

Nico softly kisses her forehead and she smiles slightly. She has Nico, if it's friendship or more. She will always have him.

Forever.

**A/N**

**That's the end! Though I might make a sequel... We'll see :D**


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